When Darkness Traps People, Consider The System
EDITOR’S CORNER
If you’ve been following the news over the last week or so, you’ve likely read of Zoraya ter Beek, the young Dutch woman...
Why Are the Youngest Children in a Classroom Diagnosed with ADHD?
A new article examines the implications of relative age on the ADHD diagnosis.
Just Like Viruses, Emotions are Contagious
Now is not the time for family members to be nursing old hurts or believe the all-too-common delusion we all periodically fall prey to—you can get, without giving, when it comes to goodwill. Gestures of decency, gratitude and appreciation will need to prevail.
Researchers Highlight Pitfalls of Cognitive Assessment in Schools
Historical, current, and potential future complexities of cognitive assessment; a longstanding, controversial fixture in schools throughout the United States.
The Role of Love in Mental Health
The one core ingredient on which any recovery from emotional distress depends is the one that never makes an appearance in any medical handbook or psychiatric diagnostic manual—that is, love.
More States Requiring Mental Health Education by Law
From TODAY: "Often, it's like the elephant in a room. It's something that they feel like, 'Oh, it's only me,'" said one teacher. "Letting them know that they're not alone...is so important."
Medication Overload, Part I: A Mountain of Drugs in America’s Cabinets
The 25th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day takes place on Saturday, October 28—and this time around, I’ll be there.
The upcoming event will provide...
Seth Farber, PhD – Long Bio
Dr. Seth Farber is a writer, social critic, dissident psychologist, visionary, activist (in the human rights, Green and anti-war movements -- and a supporter...
Madness and the Family, Part III: Practical Methods for Transforming Troubled Family Systems
We are profoundly social beings living not as isolated individuals but as integral members of interdependent social systems—our nuclear family system, and the broader social systems of extended family, peers, our community and the broader society. Therefore, psychosis and other forms of human distress often deemed “mental illness” are best seen not so much as something intrinsically “wrong” or “diseased” within the particular individual who is most exhibiting that distress, but rather as systemic problems that are merely being channeled through this individual.
Russell Razzaque, MD – Short Bio
Dialogical Psychiatry: In his column, Dr. Russell Razzaque, a UK-based psychiatrist, discusses mindfulness and related practices that help clinicians connect with themselves in order...
School-Based Mindfulness Leads to Stress Reduction, Study Finds
Researchers find improvements in stress-related outcomes among middle school students exposed to a school-based mindfulness training program.
Increasing Prevalence of Mood Disorders Among Teens and Young Adults
Depression, serious psychological distress, and suicide attempts have risen substantially since the early 2000s among young adults – what’s changed?
The Diseasing of Defiance
Is every defiant child a freedom fighter? Of course not. Disrupting your fourth grade class is not the same as embarking on the underground railway. But is oppositional defiant disorder a label meant to subjugate and to serve the needs of the authorities? Yes, absolutely.
‘Delusions’ and ‘Paranoia’: What Are They, Really, and How Can We Engage Them in...
Sam Ruck shares a second excerpt from his book "Healing Companions," which describes his life with, and love for, his wife and her “alters.”
Growing Research Connects Nutrition and Mental Health
A new article reviews studies in the field of nutritional psychiatry and how nutrition can prevent and treat mental health issues.
Parenting Changed My Perspective on “ADHD”
My experience of raising a son who was bright and creative but didn’t fit the mold helped me to approach my restless, impulsive students more compassionately and creatively.
Adderall Use Associated with Increased Risk of Psychosis
Twice as many teenagers with ADHD experienced severe psychosis when taking Adderall, as compared to Ritalin, according to a new study.
Embrace the Messiness! An Interview with Pediatrician Claudia Gold
An interview with Claudia Gold, M.D., pediatrician, infant-parent mental health specialist, author, teacher, and speaker based in western Massachusetts. We discuss the importance of human interaction in child development.
Mental Health & Our Schools, Part 2
Schools are rolling out programs and services intended to safeguard students’ emotional well-being. They are full of potential—and pitfalls.
What’s Missing from NAMI and Pro-Psychiatry: Lived Experience
Since many psych patients become forced consumers, their advocates have a duty to be educated and concerned with adverse reactions.
Interview: Is Forced Treatment Deterring Youth from Seeking Mental Health Care?
Researcher Nev Jones, Ph.D., talks about her study of youth hospitalized against their will, and how their experiences affected their attitudes about mental health treatment and providers.
My Son and the “Mental Health” System
As a father whose 27-year-old son is trapped in the mental health system, I am painfully aware that I have been unable to protect him. At age 19, my son naively told his mother and his doctor that he was hearing voices, marking the beginning of a hellish nightmare which he is still unavoidably immersed in. I would like to explain my perspective on why this is the case.
Giving Caregivers a Platform: Sherita, Mother of Tony
This is the story of Sherita and her son Tony, and her efforts to help him following years of psychiatric drugs and hospitalizations.
Antidepressant Use in Pregnancy Harms Child Development, Untreated Maternal Depression Shows Benefit
In this new study, exposure to maternal anxiety in utero also harmed child development.
Engaging “Madness”: A Guide for Significant Others and Families
Using personal stories from my own family, my new booklet Engaging 'Madness' paints a clear picture of what an alternative healing journey outside the biomedical paradigm can look like.